Contacting someone in an urgent situation can be difficult in today's business world. One approach presently utilized includes a combination of landline telephone calls, cellular telephone calls, pager calls, E-mail messages, and the like. Some systems track a person down by trying a series of these methods in succession. Trying a series of these steps might or might not result in a connection and may not result in the most efficient or most cost effective connection. For example, a long distance telephone call to a cellular telephone might reach someone when they are sitting in their office with their landline telephone in the “do not disturb” mode. The “do not disturb” mode can automatically forward all calls to a voice messaging system or an assistant. The telephone usually does not ring while in this mode of operation. These known techniques require a sequential calling scheme which results in expensive calls. They are also intrusive because they do not allow the called party to reject the call or otherwise notify the caller with a message (e.g., a possibility of calling later).
Selective call screening is also known. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,278,844, a call screening arrangement is disclosed for an intercom communication system. The described call screening features selectively screens incoming telephone calls. The unscreened calls are selected according to the currently activated call features at the called station. This patent provides a second call screening embodiment which enables activation of a call back feature.
Call back indication is provided in U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,301. This patent describes storing data associated with a detected telephone number and reading out the stored telephone number. This information is then used to produce a dialing control signal to call back the calling party. Thus, the telephone has a caller's telephone number recognition function. The caller's telephone number can be displayed on the telephone, and the user can dial with reference to the stored telephone data to call back a calling person.
Call back requests which utilize a network are set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 5,661,790. A telecommunication system receives a call back request through a separately maintained computer network and initiates the actual call back toward the requesting subscriber using its own signaling system telecommunications network. Thus, call back subscriber features are provided which utilize two different communications networks. This patent provides a system for establishing a communications link between two subscribers located within two different countries where certain outgoing calls are restricted.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,166,929 provides an interoffice call back arrangement. A telephone switching system is disclosed with facilities for processing interoffice call back information over a common channel interoffice signaling system between program controlled call processors in call originating and terminating offices upon encountering a called station busy condition. U.S. Pat. No. 5,155,761 also provides an automatic call back system. In this system, incoming calls are answered, and if the resource desired by the caller is not then available, a robot controller informs the caller when a call back to the caller can be made. The call back time can be suggested by the robot controller or the caller can request a specific call back time. At the appropriate time, the robot controller removes the information from the call back queue, places the call and connects the desired resource.
In addition to telephone calls, computers, and computer laptops are commonly used to contact someone via, for example, E-mail. Personal digital assistants (PDAs) and pagers can also be used to contact someone. What is needed is a system and method which saves on toll charges and reaches a called person more efficiently. Media blending, computer laptops and/or PDAs can be utilized as intelligent tools to place the most expedient and economic call possible. Additionally, it is desirable to have less intrusive media used to alert a called party of an incoming urgent call.